2025 Women of Excellence Awards Nomination

To be nominated, a woman should not have received a Women of Excellence Award in the past 10 years. Please note that Chamber membership is NOT required of nominee. Click here to view previous award recipients

Applications must be submitted no later than 5:00 p.m. on Friday, January 31, 2025. Nominations must follow guidelines in order to be considered. Please be prepared to submit all information at once, including your nomination essay and two letters of recommendation. Incomplete nominations will not be considered. If you have questions, please contact Gloria Baker, Senior Director Marketing and Member Services at 518.431.1421 or gbaker@capitalregionchamber.com

The Awards will be held on Friday, May 9, 2025. 

Fields marked with an * are required.

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Please select one category below. If you would like the nominee to be considered for more than one category, please submit a separate application for each. The Selection Committee reserves the right to re-categorize your application.

Emerging Professional (For Profit or Nonprofit Sector) - The nominee must illustrate that she is making significant progress toward personal and professional growth, has continually accepted additional responsibilities and has made significant contributions to her work environment. Criteria to be evaluated includes career progression, leadership skills, demonstrated success and a promising future. 

Excellence in Business (For Profit or Nonprofit Sector) - The nominee, who owns at least 50 percent of a business that has been established for at least five years, will be evaluated on organizational culture, proven record on solving problems, growing and managing resources, and delivering results.  She constantly strives to provide value and create a better experience for employees and customers.  Solid business practices, profitability, and the use of human and financial resources will be evaluated in relation to the overall success of her business.

Excellence in Business Innovation* (For Profit or Nonprofit Sector) - The nominee utilized innovation to develop a new market, product or service, or to solve a significant challenge, develop a new business model/operational strategy.  Innovation does not have to be something that's considered a breakthrough, it could be applying new processes, new techniques to the existing business.

Excellence in Management (For Profit or Nonprofit Sector) - The nominee demonstrates steady growth and continued development of management and leadership skills.  She maximizes organizational effectiveness and sustainability through decisive action, empowerment of her team, and strong financial management  She ensures that people have the support and tools they need, and that the workforce has the capacity to meet organizational objectives  Criteria to be evaluated include the nominee's initiative, willingness to take risks, her ability to implement creative solutions to overcome challenges and seize opportunities. 

Excellence in the Professions (For Profit or Nonprofit Sector) - The nominee may be an employee of an existing for-profit or non-profit organization or company or a self-employed professional. She demonstrates leadership and a willingness to teach and mentor others in her profession and consistently uphold the standards and ethics that govern her field. A professional license is not required for this category.

Distinguished Career (For Profit or Nonprofit Sector) - The nominee must have at least 25 years of experience and demonstrate a lifetime of exemplary contribution to her field and the community.  Willingness to teach and mentor others in her profession and consistently uphold the standards and ethics that govern her field.


*Replaces Excellence in Business Development

Your response to each of the questions listed below is limited to 500 words. (Please note: The Selection Committee will only consider the first 500 words of each response if the word count is exceeded). We highly recommend that the nominator contact the nominee to gain accurate and comprehensive information relevant to the award category.

1.    Describe the nominee’s career progression relating to the award description.

2.    Describe the nominee’s most important professional accomplishment relating to the award description.  

3.    What has been the nominee’s greatest challenge and how was that challenge overcome?

4.    Describe the nominee’s community involvement and volunteer participation.

5.    What makes this nominee uniquely deserving of a Women of Excellence Award?

6.    Required for “Excellence in Business” category only – please provide proof of ownership and the year the company was established.  

20MB max

Two letters of recommendation are required to support the nomination. Unfortunately, we are unable to consider any additional letters submitted. Please upload each letter separately below. 

The Selection Committee (made up of past recipients) bases its decision on the information provided in the application. We encourage you to provide complete answers and detailed information.  

20MB max

Please upload the second letter of recommendation below. 

20MB max

If you are nominating someone for an award, please fill out the contact information below:

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